Amusing action sci fi adventure, but nothing special.

Rating: 5/10 (23 March 2006)

There's nothing wrong with The Island, and I enjoyed the well-paced action scenes and special effects. But there's little tension and the plot is very old fashioned. There's only one twist and it comes early on in the film, so all you can do is wait for the inevitable happy ending with lots of cool explosions. Ewan McGregor gets all the good lines, but they are pretty few and far between, and poor old Scarlett is left largely in the bimbo sidekick role. They do their best with a lukewarm script, but it's not a gem. That said, the movie is hugely enjoyable after a few beers, and no one will complain they weren't entertained. But plotwise, it felt dated and I'd hoped for something a bit more engaging.